LOSSAN pedestrian safety project installs rail bridge

A portion of the Los Angeles-San Diego-San Luis Obispo (LOSSAN) coastal rail line between Oceanside and Downtown San Diego, Calif., will be shut down as construction crews work to install a new rail bridge for the pedestrian safety undercrossing at Santa Fe Drive in Encinitas.

Construction will begin September 7, at midnight and continue through Monday, September 10. Because this is an active rail line with more than 50 trains operating each day, the bridge installation must be done throughout the weekend.

The San Diego Association of Governments is building the first of four pedestrian rail safety crossings in Encinitas in collaboration with the city of Encinitas and North County Transit District. The Santa Fe crossing will create a new rail bridge and pedestrian undercrossing beneath the tracks between Highway 101 and Vulcan Avenue, west of Santa Fe Drive. As part of the project, a new crosswalk and traffic signal on Highway 101 will be installed to increase pedestrian safety. With the construction of the crossing, pedestrian access to beaches, schools, commercial areas and residential neighborhoods across a very active rail line will be dramatically improved.

A budget of $5.9 million has been allocated for the engineering and construction of the Santa Fe crossing, which is expected to be complete in late 2012.

The San Diego segment of the LOSSAN corridor plays a critical role in the movement of people and goods within the region's North Coast Corridor. During the next 20 years, more than $800 million in improvements are planned in the San Diego County section of the LOSSAN rail corridor. These projects include double tracking, bridge and track replacement, new stations, grade separations and other improvements to shorten trip times and increase passenger rail service in the corridor.